Your social security number (SSN) is a nine-digit number that identifies you with the Social Security Administration. This number is used to identify you to employers, record your earnings, and to collect Social Security or other government benefits.
If you need to obtain a Social Security card, you should only do so through the Social Security Administration. You should not use the social security card templates that you find online. These are not legally valid.
You need a SSN to:
To apply for a Social Security card, you need to provide at least two forms of identification that prove your age, identity, and U.S. citizenship or legal work status. Non-U.S. citizens who do not have DHS work authorization must prove that they have a valid reason for requesting the card.
Documents that prove age include:
Documents that prove identity:
If you do not have one of these documents, the Social Security Administration will ask to see other documents including:
All identifying documents must be current and show name, birthdate or age information, and preferably a recent photograph.
U.S. Citizenship should be proved through U.S. birth certificate, U.S. Passport, Consular Report of Birth, Certificate of Citizenship, or Certificate of Naturalization. U.S. Immigration Status should be proven through an unexpired document from the Department of Homeland Security, such as Form I-551, I-94, or I-766.
The application for a Social Security Card requires you to provide:
It important to know that you should not use the social security card template downloads that you find online. Many website templates allow users to create fake social security cards. These sites typically have a blank social security card template that you can fill in yourself. These sites sometimes say that the free templates should only be used to create a "novelty social security card."
These sites often provide you with a psd template or a social security card template pdf. The psd template is something that you can modify if you have a program like Adobe. Pdf documents are more difficult to modify.
If you choose to use these editable social security card templates, know that you could be committing a crime.
If you use these blank American social security cards, some of the potential penalties include: